New study re-ignites debate over child care - Nightly News with Brian Williams - MSNBC.com

New study re-ignites debate over child care - Nightly News with Brian Williams - MSNBC.com The child care debate rages on and I have to start wondering what the real purpose behind all of this is. According to experts (whatever that is), the best interest of the children are at the core of this battle. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for that. I'm even willing to go so far as to say that many of the results from studies such as the one mentioned above are worthwhile. Ultimately, though, what comes out of studies like this is further backlash against working moms--and this is what pisses me off no end. To reduce study results down to the level where people can't point fingers and say, "This is what causes kids to have problems" tries to tie a complicated issue into a nice, neat little package. If only we could point to one (or even just a few things) and say, "THIS" is what has the greatest impact on our children, parents across the world would rejoice and declare a national holiday. Unfortunately, that's never going to happen, because we're talking about people here, who come from a variety of backgrounds and family situations. There is no way to find one or just a few common denominators. Childcare has become a necessity. Many (if not most) parents put their kids in child care because they have to, not because they want to kick back and let someone else raise their kids. In today's economic climate, a two income family has changed from a luxury to the only way many of them can afford to keep a roof over their heads, food on the table and clothes on their back. The effects of childcare should be studied--as a parent, I want to know what the system is doing, overall, to look out for the welfare of my child. However, those results should not be swung back at me to make me feel like I'm breaking the first commandment of good parenting. The results should be studied by parents, teachers and those in the government to see how the childcare system can be improved and what ways can be implemented to better support parents and teachers of children who are in our care. I am a parent who has had the fortune of seeing both sides of this issue: Cailyn is the product of being in daycare full time until she went to school. Erin was in day cares off and on for a while, and then I stayed home with her until she started preschool this year. I can use Cailyn as an example of how to disprove many of the assertions made in this study. At the risk of sounding like a biased mom, I won't go into all of them. The bottom line is that, for Cailyn, daycare was a blessing. She got to interact with children her own age, got to know other adults in her life besides her father and myself, began to understand structure and rules in a group setting and had opportunities to go places and see things that I probably wouldn't have had the chance to share with her. Erin had a hard time fitting into her first daycare, but once we found the right place for her, she blossomed as well. Currently, she is in full time preschool and adores it. Every child is different, just as every day care is different. A good match is hard to find, and that is our responsiblity, as parents, to really go out there and do the research if a child has to go into daycare. Finding a good match could possibly alleviate a number of the problems cited in this study. Better funding (especially where government mandates are concerned), and more community and family involvement are other potential solutions. These are the things that should be addressed. Instead, many areas of the media and various child experts would rather focus on the results only and stress how bad it is for kids to be in daycare. Yes, there are problems, but they aren't with the parents who have to rely on others to help care of their children while they work to pay the bills. Our problem is much larger than that: it's a society that finds it easier to make judgements than find solutions.